


Courage

by the_Pop_Culturist



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon), Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-11
Updated: 2015-07-11
Packaged: 2018-04-08 18:29:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4315737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_Pop_Culturist/pseuds/the_Pop_Culturist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jason Todd came looking for an Outlaw. He got much more than he bargained for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Courage

To say this night was a disaster would be the understatement of the year, the decade possibly. If one had to pinpoint the moment were everything went off the tracks, it would be the time frame between the Zeta Tube announcing the incoming arrival of Jason Todd and him stepping off the transport pad. The previously deceased former Robin had been brought in as a consultant, a personal favor to the Dark Knight. This favor was one in a series of small olive branches the former partners threw towards other from time to time, an attempt to ease an extremely tumultuous and combustible relationship strained forever thanks to the clown prince of crime. The two would never be what they once were, but they still shared a city as well as a history, and despite their differences, this particular incident was right up Todd's alley.

New York Senator Thomas Osborne, the same senator currently pushing the newest gun and racketeering bill through Congress, had come home to discover his two young daughters missing, along with a note and rendezvous point detailing the conditions of their release. There was one rule, the only rule. If any law enforcement agencies became involved, the girls were dead; a slow tortuous one that was laid out so graphically Osborne nearly wretched. Soon after, the senator and his wife barricaded themselves from their friends and family, keeping the girls absence and the kidnappers demands secret from everyone, everyone accept his lifelong friend Jim, Commissioner James Gordon to be exact.

It was a squeeze play pure and simple. Kill the bill and his daughters would go free, but when dealing with crime bosses, especially ones as dangerous as the Five Families, things were never that simple. Once they had you, they had you forever. The organization knew where Osborne was most vulnerable, and if they succeeded in him killing his own bill, his family would never be safe again.

Gordon new exactly who to call, and moments after that conversation ended, a second communique was sent from a dark underground fortress in Gotham City to another cave located off the shoreline of Rhode Island.

The original six, fondly nicknamed Young Justice by its junior members had parted ways somewhat amicably after years of successful missions. Life, school, jobs, relationships, all things that become unavoidable for twenty something's finally got in the way. They still did hero work, but on their own terms and schedules, unaffiliated with leagues, teams, or former mentors. Their absence allowed the younger heroes that trained under them the opportunity to forge their own path and become a unit to reckon with in their own right.

However when you played at the level those six did, you never can truly walk away, not entirely. When one day out of the blue Dick Grayson contacted the group and suggested a brief reunion for a one time mission, everyone hesitantly agreed and signed on under those specific terms. One mission and one mission only, after that they part ways and remember to send Christmas cards over the holidays. At missions end they'd move on, no strings attached and no hard feelings. That was a little under a year ago and so far no one had walked away as of yet.

It could be perfect chemistry at times, an uneasy alliance in others. They still bumped heads, egos got bruised, and patience worn thin, but throughout it all they still remained friends, still a family. It was that word family that was the major point of contention this evening.

Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon sat silently as the BioShip landed inside their mountain headquarters. They were angry, disgusted, not just at Todd, but at the man who had sent him to them. He must have known what the outcome would have been, he wouldn't have put that much blind trust into Jason again would he? Batgirl and Nightwing had always subscribed to Batman's one unbreakable rule, his own personal 5th commandment. Thou shall not kill. However Jason Todd had never been an overly religious man.

Todd had always been brash, daring, but after his death and resurrection, reckless had become his newest superpower. He was smart, charismatic and damn good at what he did. His actions had saved lives this night, and no matter how angry the two were, they couldn't help but realize without him two innocent girls would be dead.

Their target tonight would have been a great catch, someone who would have broken under the unique interrogation methods taught to them by the Dark Knight and rolled on their conspirators if it meant saving his neck. The mafia boss Salvatore Motolla would have sold out the entire Gotham criminal operation to save himself, except for the small fact that he and three of his lieutenants now lay in a Gotham morgue with two in the head and one in the chest courtesy of the consultant Red Hood.

Dead bodies aside for the moment, the issue at the forefront of their minds remained family. Dick, Barbara, Stephanie, Tim, Cassandra, Damian, Jason, all closer than blood, bonded by shared experiences and loss that no one would ever know let alone understand. Since Bruce had taken Jason in all those years ago, time and time again they would be presented with an issue similar to tonight, when they would have to choose family over common sense. Defend his actions, his lack of morality, his choices for the greater good, but mainly defend him because he was one of their own if they liked it or not. They supported him, protected him, from others as much as from himself. That's what families did, and tonight they would support him again, by their silence.

Conner slammed open the hatch to the BioShip and stormed out, perused quickly by his Martian fiancé. Kaldur exited alone in solemn thought, followed by Artemis and Jason who chatted their way down the gantry as if everything was perfectly normal, leaving Dick, Barbara and Wally alone in the cabin. After a few more moments of silence Dick got to his feet and pulled Barbara to hers making their way towards the exit.

"You coming?" Nightwing asked the speedster

"In a minute," Wally replied, his gaze never leaving the viewport, lost in his thoughts. Dick didn't have to be a telepath to know what his best friend was wondering. _Why am I here?_

The speedster had been the hardest to persuade to come back, more than comfortable with the college life, including a healthy dose of on again off again girlfriends, crappy part time jobs, and heroing on the side., but when everyone else agreed to return, he wasn't about to be the lone holdout. One thing Dick found most interesting, a topic he had kept in the chamber for just the right moment, was off all their teammates proposed to return, the first one Wally asked about was Artemis.

The group made their way into the main conference room while Todd entered the galley, heading directly for the food stocks without the slightest permission or care for that matter, opening the fridge and helping himself to its contents. Artemis removed her array of weapons, laying them down beside her but always within reach, and pulled up a chair and sat next to him, being the only one of the group who didn't seem troubled by this evening's events. A former assassin herself, she recognized early on the probable outcome, someone was going to die, and better it be a scumbag crime boss and his lackeys as opposed to two young girls whose only sin was being the daughter of a man trying to make a difference.

Tonight's killing had been justified in her book, a means to an end. Salvatore had brought it all on himself the moment he kidnapped those girls. He had mistakenly counted on their rescuer's morality, considering their code a sign of weakness, something to exploit, but a member of that team had no such code when lives were at stake. That was the reason those girls still drew breath.

Even before this evening exploits, Artemis has been rethinking her allegiance within this group, growing weary of the constant game of catch and release her teammates played. These people were like family, closer than if she was completely honest with herself, but over time families grow apart. It's just inevitable sometimes. Her time apart as a solo act had produced concrete results, her mantra being by any means necessary. She had a comfortable moral flexibility that enabled her to do things others wouldn't. Not anything as extreme as Todd's actions tonight, but close enough if the situation warranted it, the beauty and curse of being an ex-assassin she assumed.

Red Hood and Tigress were familiar by reputation only, and even after she returned to her original costume and identity upon rejoining her old team, she was the first person he acknowledged, even before Dick and Barbara. Seeing him in action, seeing real justice being dispensed, final justice, brought about the rush she'd hoped would return once she rejoined her old teammates a year ago, but like Thomas Wolfe once wrote, you can't go home again.

Red Hood and Outlaws were changing the rules, striking fear in crime bosses and super villains alike, and the archer wanted to be part of that movement. With the volatile personalities and violent tendencies of Jason, Starfire and Arsenal, she felt that was a group she might fit in perfectly. She hoped tonight after meeting Todd, he might be feeling the same way.

Saying goodbye would not be easy, and unfortunately her timing sucked as usual. She fought through pangs of guilt at the idea of once again leaving the cave, leaving her friends, but when would she have another opportunity like this to meet the man whose team was inspiring her more and more with each operation they were involved with. Tonight was a perfect example of conflicting definitions of success, and this evening the man called Red Hood had done right, in her book at least. Despite trying to move away from her shadowed upbringing, she still found herself attracted to that kind of brutal, final justice.

To his team, not the man she tried to convince herself, but damn she liked his style and he was easy on the eyes. She shook her head and composed herself.

She glanced around the room, trying to think of how she would drop the news. Even if Todd wasn't interested in her impromptu application, she still realized the time was drawing near to cut ties and move on, it was never supposed to be a permanent alliance anyway.

She glanced around the room silently, wondering what and how she would tell them. Her eyes first rested on the Atlantean she admired so much. Kaldur had always been so understanding and non-judgemental, had always been there for her. He supported her when others wouldn't and remained the same noble youth she spent hours with on the beach listening to tales of a life she never dreamed possible. He'd lost more than most, but it never changed him, never broke him. Nobility was not a strong enough word.

She looked to Conner and Megan remembering the cold and distant clone and the cheerful but insecure Martian, _god how much they'd changed_. They both brought the best out in each other, strength and compassion, fire and ice. Two aliens who had become just about the most human individuals she'd ever known.

She stared admiringly at Dick and the man and leader he'd become. She applauded Barbara's dedication and fire, a perfect match and counter balance to the Dark Knight in waiting. Despite their constant denials, they were perfect for each other, a formidable duo in and out of costume. Artemis always hoped she would find someone like that someday. It seemed like mere months ago a wise cracking youth, inches shorter and in a much brighter costume reminded her of the fact that You are not your family. Dick was probably the reason she remained a hero to this day.

She gritted her teeth slightly with thoughts of the absent speedster. He was still an enigma to her, and she had always hated puzzles. When the team reunited, nothing made her happier for some strange reason than to have judgmental forest green eyes cast upon her once again. Wally was still the same sanctimonies smart-ass she remembered, but now had gained the unique ability to stop on a dime and transition to one of the warmest and compassionate people she'd ever met, one that could literally take her breath away. This new duality confused and intrigued her. They would still bicker and argue, their preferred form of communication, but deep down she enjoyed it and she knew he did too

Lately something had changed, he'd become quiet, distant, not to the others, just to her. She would catch him staring and a blink later he'd be gone. She'd asked what was wrong, what she'd done, but he'd play it off with the trademark West deflection method that infuriated her so. Now she realized that perhaps Wally was preparing to say his goodbyes too, and that made her sad.

Conner came up on the other side of the bar, sitting down with enough force to rock the table and the dishes resting on it. Jason barely reacted. Red Hood took his time finishing his sandwich before sitting up and finally acknowledging the clone. Todd took the napkin, dabbing it on his chin nonchalantly to further irritate the junior man of steel before finally folding his hands on his lap and smiling at his antagonist's angry glare.

"Ok. Let's hear it," he smirked, drawing even more ire from the Kryptonian.

Conner turned briefly to Nightwing, showing his displeasure at their leader's silence. The two men had known each other a long time and Conner knew exactly why Dick had chosen to sit this particular argument out. _Once a bat, always a bat_ he thought disgusted.

"What the hell were you thinking!?" Conner growled. "Did you even fucking consider that maybe one of us could have gotten to Salvatore first, stopped him without killing him? Faster than a speeding bullet remember?" the dark haired man spit pointing his finger at his chest, "and Wally's even faster. Why didn't you give us the chance? What if you'd missed? Did you even think for a moment what murdering him in front of those girls would do to them? He wanted to negotiate; do you realize what he could have given us?" Jesus!" Conner cursed turning away instead of knocking Hood through the wall.

Todd looked at Conner with bemused expression, like a father patiently listening to a child's inane imagination. He smirked as he began.

"First, I never miss, second I never negotiate, third, there is no way you all are that fucking naïve? He was going to kill the girls regardless, you know that right? Anything he would have told you regarding the Five Families would have been complete and utter bullshit."

"You do not know that, but know this my friend, we are not executioners. Who gives you the right to play God?" Kaldur asked calmly, stepping carefully between Todd and Conner, trying to defuse the situation slightly.

"I give myself that right," Hood snapped before lowering his tone. "When those fuckers do what they do, they need to feel the fear. They don't fear you guys, there's no reason to. Salvatore would have been back on the streets in less than two years, that's how screwed up our legal system is. I sent a message tonight, pure and simple. Three bullets will do more good than any horseshit ramblings he would have given to save his own ass."

Todd smiled and turned to Dick and Barbara. "Ask them," he gestured." They know it's the truth, hell Grayson would more than likely agree with me if Daddy Bat wasn't probably bugging this place. Why do you think Bats asked me here in the first place? This is the scum I deal with day in and day out while your team fights _dastardly_ villains," he mocked. "Guys like Salvatore prey on the innocent, torture, maim, kill, without the slightest bit of remorse or hesitation, and when they're caught? Their cases are either thrown out or they live like kings over in Blackgate while they count down the days."

He took another bite and walked past Conner smirking, settling beside the blonde archer back at the bar. "How do you put up with this? I know you, I know your reputation. What the hell are you doing with these guys? You're wasting your talent here."

Artemis wished he would have said that privately, but she knew deep down he was right.

Todd was under Conner's skin; he knew it and welcomed it. He'd never back down from a fight no matter who the opponent, and with the clone's lineage, Conner had a lot of damn gall lecturing the Outlaw on his principles.

Dick had told him stories of the volatile Krypotonian and his anger management issues. Jason had expected someone closer to Roy Harper's demeanor, instead he got a domesticated version of Big Blue himself, it was time to remind Mr. High and Mighty exactly where half his morality came from.

"You know Kent, I kinda of expected a little more understanding from you being Lex Luthor's half son and all. I'd thought some of that stellar DNA would have rubbed off a little and you'd understand what I'm saying."

Dick's eyes grew wide in anger, no longer able to sit this one out, family be dammed. Todd grinned and went back to the refrigerator searching out something more to satiate his appetite, when Conner slammed the door shut with such ferocity; it nearly took Hood's fingers right off. Once again Todd remained non-plussed.

Conner lurched forward and Todd effortlessly side-stepped as Dick and Kaldur jumped between them.

"You know what pisses you all off the most, it's that you know I'm right." Jason replied and moved away while Megan mentally reached her fiancé, sending calming thoughts into his volcanic mind.

"Kent would love to beat the shit out of me right now, but that's where it would end. He can't go any further, none of you can. You're afraid to go there. You can say the words all you want, but none of you have the courage to back them up. It's not a code, its weakness."

Todd stepped away from the kitchen, taking center stage in the large media room to educate this supposedly team of seasoned veterans.

"The guys Bats sends you all after, they don't fear you, they're not afraid of you, but they sure as hell are of me. I do the things you're won't do. I'll get into their minds, go places and depths none of you could even begin to understand. Me and my team, we do these things so you "heroes" don't have to get your fancy costumes dirty. I don't mind the blood, because I know I make a difference.

Todd's eyes locked on to Artemis as she nodded, that's when he knew he'd made a connection. The whole argument with Superboy had the added bonus of seeing what side she leaned towards, and she was the only one outside of Batman's loyals not to take one.

Todd smiled, he knew he'd found his newest Outlaw. He prepared to pull her aside when a pair of high tech goggles flew past his face at 600 mph, shattering across the far cave wall.

"Skill? Courage? Are you freaking kidding me?"

The cave turned as the infuriated speedster stormed in, having heard the entire exchange, clearly disgusted.

"You actually think killing is hard, something to brag about or be proud of? There's not one of us who hasn't been pushed to the edge, battled against ourselves not to lose it."

Todd argued back, "I'm not talking about some knee jerk reaction science boy, I 'm talking strategy, planning, precision, skill. Something none of you have the guts to do, let alone think about."

The argument was getting tiresome, boring, and Hood had places to go. Nightwing's team would never understand what it takes, and he was tired of playing with amateurs. The Outlaws awaited, already gathering intel on their latest target more than likely. Hood hoped when he met up with them later this night, he might just be introducing their newest member.

"Good night kids, it's been a blast. Let's do this again sometime." He walked towards the transport pad, pausing briefly at the archer. She looked up at him, trying to decide what to say, her hands inexplicably holding her quiver, ready to follow when a voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Three seconds," Wally said coldly.

Red Hood sighed shaking his head in exasperation, turning and smirking at the speedster. "What'd you say W….?"

Before he could even finish his sentence, Todd found himself slammed against the cold cave wall, a red gloved hand clutching his throat, knocking the breath completely out of him

"I said three seconds," Wally growled, his left hand mere inches away from Todd's head, crackling with energy, quickly becoming translucent while his right held the mercenary firmly into place.

"Three seconds from the moment my fingers vibrate into your Cerebral Cortex to the moment your nervous system shuts down and you slump to the floor drooling."

Just as suddenly the speedster left Todd's side and appeared in front of Dick and Barbara, his fists resting gently on their mid-sections.

"A blow to their solar plexus followed by strikes to the biceps, while simultaneously activating the explosive batarangs on their belts. The paralysis from the assault subsides in eight to nine second best case scenario, demolition of those charges takes place in five."

In the blink of an eye he stood in front of the Atlantean. "Kal is the closest and first to react. It takes him three seconds to reach for his water-bearers and two seconds to charge them. Four to five seconds later he strikes at my current position, but in his rush he doesn't' notice the generator relay I'm standing in front of. The resulting feedback takes another three to five seconds to reach him at which point he worries, unsure how much electricity his bio receptors can absorb. Best case scenario minor burns to coma, worst case complete and permanent neural shutdown. From the moment his hands touch his bearers to the moment his brain function stops, twelve to fifteen seconds.

Artemis never felt her quiver removed when Wally appeared in front of her. He paused for a nanosecond, looking hesitantly into her blue gray eyes before the arrow appeared in his hand, carefully leaving the thick plastic casing around the tip.

"Cyanide tipped titanium razor. From the moment it's removed from the protective sheath, slashing her throat in the process and embedded straight into her heart, four seconds, all major body function stopping a minute or so later.

Artemis stared in shock as Wally quickly arrived in front of Megan, holding two more of the archer's arrows.

"Being moderately carefully, allowing up to six seconds to remove both the tip and the gunpowder inside before spreading it all over our favorite Martian and igniting it, an additional three just to be on the safe side."

"Finally we come to Conner who should be the most difficult to stop. Thirteen seconds tops. The most difficult part being bypassing all the security measures on Nightwing utility belt before retrieving the small sliver of Kryptonite that Batman forces all his protégés to carry and shoving it into his mouth as he screams and runs to Megan's side to extinguish the flames.

Wally looked remorsefully at his friend. "You swallow it without even realizing it, and moments later you're completely immobilized, lying next to your beautiful fiancé as she burns, unable to do a thing about it."

Wally turned and glared at Red Hood. "From the moment I slam your ass into the wall till Conner hits the ground, the entire operation takes somewhere between 45 seconds to a minute and a half tops. Only a few of you will even get a chance to register what's happened, and probably only Artemis stays conscious long enough to know it was me. Do you know how sick that makes me feel to have even considered something like this?"

Wally walked over slowly and gently handed the archer back her arrows. "Sorry," is all he could muster, while his eyes struggled to say more.

He frowned at the other's as much as much as himself as he concluded. "Tonight there was another way, there's always another way. You saved two lives tonight Jason, but don't'for a second think what you did was brave or noble, all you showed was you're no better than they are."

In a blur Wally stood in his jeans and Stanford hoodie, holding the yellow and red fabric in his hands. "This uniform means something, it stands for something important, something bigger than me, and the moment I truly consider taking the easy way out, I don't deserve to put it on ever again."

His uniform began to glow before shrinking into the gold ring with the lightning insignia he wore. The speedster walked over and picked up the shattered remains of his goggles, stuffing the expensive pieces in his pocket that he wouldn't be able to to afford replacing anytime soon. He took a deep calming breath and looked around the room at his friends, his family, uncomfortable in the knowledge that each one of them had played out a similar scenario in their mind at some point.

"It doesn't take courage to kill, it takes courage not to." he said simply

Wally stuck his hands in his pockets and walked towards the Zeta Tubes, more than ready to put this night behind him. He pictured those two innocent girls in his mind, their terrified blood splattered faces, but he also remembered the tears in their eyes as their mother and father held onto them for dear life, thankful beyond words they were alive. Nothing he said tonight to Jason would change a thing, but it really wasn't Red Hood he was talking to.

He stopped in front of Artemis, finally finding the courage to speak to the woman he'd been avoiding since the moment he realized he was in love with her…again. His hand nervously made its way to her face and he gently palmed it.

"You're better than that, better than him. I know you are. No one's going to blame you if you decide to leave, but you two aren't the same. Not anymore. I know you get frustrated with us, me in particular, but you have nothing to prove, you're not who you were."

His hand hesitantly stroked her check before quickly withdrawing.

"...and I'd miss you."

Wally walked away and entered the transport code to Palo Alto and waited for the computer to acknowledge his identity. He turned as the Zeta burst to life.

"Guys I'm heading home. I have an Inorganic Chemistry paper due tomorrow morning and about three hours to write it. Dick call me later, let me know the fallout. Todd don't let the Zeta kick you in the ass on your way out."

Before the beams took their hold, his eyes locked onto the archer. "See you this weekend?" he asked hopeful.

Her lips formed a warm smile and gave him the answer he hoped for, an answer to so many questions they both had been too afraid to ask. She could still feel his warm touch, not only on her face but in her heart, and she'd spend the rest of week waiting for Friday and the long discussion that had been years in the making.

He was a puzzle, but one she had finally found the missing piece to.

Screw you Thomas Wolfe, she smiled gathering her bag and heading to the Zeta Tubes and eventually home, reminding herself never to lose the human part of being a hero. Not everyone was meant to be an Outlaw after all, at least not her.


End file.
